Moisture-curable compositions cure in the presence of moisture to form crosslinked materials such as adhesives, sealants, and coatings that are useful in many industries. The moisture for curing is typically obtained from the atmosphere or from a substrate to which the composition has been applied, although it can also be added to the composition (for example, to enable curing in depth or in confinement).
Moisture-curable compositions usually comprise polymers having groups (for example, alkoxysilyl or acyloxysilyl moieties) that can react in the presence of moisture to form cured (that is, crosslinked) materials. A wide variety of polymers can be rendered moisture curable, including polyolefins, polyesters, polyethers, polyacrylates, polyvinyl chloride, polyphosphazenes, polysiloxanes, polysulfides, block copolymers, and fluorinated derivatives thereof, the particular polymer being selected based on the intended use. For example, a polysiloxane or fluorinated polyether is often selected to provide release coatings suitable for use with pressure-sensitive adhesives.
Moisture-curable compositions comprising alkoxysilyl or acyloxysilyl functionality typically cure in two reactions. In the first reaction, the alkoxysilyl or acyloxysilyl groups hydrolyze in the presence of moisture and a catalyst to form silanol compounds having hydroxysilyl groups. In the second reaction, the hydroxysilyl groups condense with other hydroxysilyl, alkoxysilyl, or acyloxysilyl groups in the presence of a catalyst to form —Si—O—Si— linkages. The two reactions occur essentially simultaneously upon generation of the silanol compound. Commonly used catalysts for the two reactions include Bronsted and Lewis acids. A single material can catalyze both reactions.
Preferably, the hydrolysis and condensation reactions proceed quickly after the moisture-curable composition has been applied, for example, to a substrate. At the same time, however, the reactions must not occur prematurely, for example, during processing or storage.
A good balance between these properties is often difficult to obtain, as rapid reactivity and storage stability are opposite properties to each other. For example, highly active catalysts such as tetraalkyl titanate esters rapidly accelerate the moisture-curing reaction but, at the same time, can make it difficult to process the materials without risking premature gelation in feed tanks, coating equipment, and other manufacturing and handling apparatus. Control of the amount of moisture can be critical, with too little moisture potentially resulting in slow or incomplete cure and too much moisture resulting in premature cure.
A variety of approaches have been used for providing moisture-curable compositions that have acceptable cure rates without processing and storage difficulties. For example, two-part systems have been developed (one part comprising a functional polymer and the other part comprising a catalyst), with the two parts being mixed immediately prior to use. While this approach has been useful in small-scale applications, it has been less efficient for large-scale manufacturing, where delays caused by having to mix the two parts have been undesirable. Furthermore, coating operations must be completed expeditiously before the composition cures in the pot, and this has been difficult when working with large surface area substrates or a large volume of composition.
Ammonium salt catalysts have been developed that are inactive until heated sufficiently to liberate an acid compound that initiates the moisture curing reaction. Liberation of the acid also generates an amine, however, that must be removed by evaporation. In addition, the heat used to activate the catalyst can damage heat-sensitive substrates onto which the composition has been applied.
Other materials (for example, onium salts such as sulfonium and iodonium salts) have been used to generate acid species in situ upon irradiation (for example, irradiation with ultraviolet light). Such materials have not required heat activation and therefore have enabled the use of heat-sensitive substrates without damage (and without the production of undesirable species requiring removal), but the materials have been relatively expensive, have required moisture control, and have exhibited cure inhibition on some substrates.
Conventional tin catalysts such as dibutyl tin dilaurate can provide stable curable compositions that can be processed and coated without premature gelation. In addition to typical moisture-curable systems, it has been found that curable compositions comprising dual reactive silane functionality in the form of hydrosilyl and hydroxysilyl groups (dehydrogenatively-curable systems) can be cured by using tin catalysts. The compositions have been widely used for pressure-sensitive adhesive and mold release applications but have sometimes suffered from relatively short pot lives. In addition, the use of tin catalysts is becoming particularly problematic because the organotin compounds generally employed as catalysts are now considered to be toxicologically objectionable.
Acceleration of cure has been achieved by the use of compounds such as substituted guanidines, diorganosulfoxides, imidazoles, amidines, and amines in combination with tin catalysts in room temperature vulcanizing silicone compositions. Amine compounds including amidines have also been proposed for use in the absence of tin catalysts for curing moisture-curable, silyl-functional organic polymers, but practical curability of alkoxysilyl-functional polymers and acceptable adhesion to substrates were achieved only with strongly basic amines (those exhibiting a pH of at least 13.4 in aqueous solution).